When I disassembled my 1886 toplever hammer 10 and my 1906 hammerless 10, I discovered that the design prevented the toplevers from traveling to the left of center. Due to the way the receiver and individual components were machined, there is no way that my two toplevers can go left. The hammer gun has not seen much use and it locks up very tight.
The hammerless gun has seen much use and it wiggles a bit. I 'fixed it' with a .001" stainless shim. The toplever stops at dead center, but the remaining locking bits are worn and kinda sloppy.
My two guns may not be the 'norm'. It is just what I observed when cleaning them. Gary, these comments may not apply to your situation. I was adding a twist to Edgar's